Most of us who are a bit older will have some experience that when things get us down, a walk outside, a sit or digging in the garden, can genuinely make us feel better. One hears many adults talk about the freedom of their childhood when they played in the woods near home, had family picnics in meadows, or simply spent hours playing unsupervised in the local park.
Times have changed, with increased anxiety about allowing children to play unsupervised outdoors. We have become a risk averse society and the impact of this has been to de-skill children in knowing how to build independence and life skills.
Sweden has had some interesting research done on the decline in mental health and coping skills of their young people and have coined the term ‘curling parents’ based on the concept of where challenges are smoothed over and made easy for children by anxious parents. The parenting styles of allowing children full autonomy and the power to make their own decisions with no sanction from a very early age reportedly has started to backfire on these children’s lack of happiness, increased suicide levels and breakdown in discipline in schools.
The result is that we are not teaching them the importance of boundaries, coping skills or building resilience to cope with life – all of which play a part in increasing depression and mental health issues in young people across Europe.
The Wilderness Foundation, working with The University of Essex, researches and evaluates the changes in young peoples’ moods, self-esteem, sense of hopefulness and ability to care for themselves through outdoor programmes.
The Foundation facilitates a wide range of young people on challenging wilderness therapy journeys on foot or by canoe in wild places, or simply creates outdoor programmes nearer to home in Essex – where they learn to cope with the weather, mud, bugs and bees, and learn new skills such as fire lighting, navigation, shelter building and knife skills.
Nature is the best teacher of all, because it cannot be manipulated or challenged. It creates natural boundaries. Young people have to learn to cope with what it throws at them, including rain, too much sun, cold or wind. By learning the skills to work with and through discomfort, it enables children to grow their self-efficacy or coping strategies, and also learn their capabilities and awareness of their strengths.
Coupled with this, the outdoor experiences build key elements of transition from adolescence to healthy adulthood. Working on four principles including a sense of belonging, independence, mastery of skills, and generosity, young people are given vital tools to take with them on their life journey. Research evidences significant shifts in feeling better about themselves and stronger – all linked to a growing connection to nature and the outdoors.
Adding these elements of exploration, adventure and challenge all work – so bring on the rain, wind and choppy waters – they are some of our most efficient mechanisms for creating positive generations for the future.
